How children search the internet using keyword interfaces

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 26 Feb, 2009

Paper on study how how children search the Internet using keyword interfaces in the home. 

From the abstract: 

Children are among the most frequent users of the Internet, yet searching and browsing the web can present many challenges. Studies over the past two decades on how children search were conducted with finite and pre-determined content found in CD-ROM applications, online digital libraries, and web directories. However, with the current popularity of the open Internet and keyword-based interfaces for searching it, more critical analysis of the challenges children face today is needed. This paper presents the findings of our initial study to understand how children ages 7, 9, and 11 search the Internet using keyword interfaces in the home. Our research has revealed that although today’s children have been exposed to computers for most of their lives, spelling, typing, query formulation, and deciphering results are all still potential barriers to finding the information they need.

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"Is violence out of control at our schools?" Seminar

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 24 Feb, 2009
The Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR), Cape Town, South Africa, invites you and members of your organisation to the seminar

“Is Violence Out of Control at Our Schools?”

 CHAIR:                                    Mr Jody Kollapen
                                                Chairperson, South African Human Rights Commission, Johannesburg
 
 SPEAKERS:                              Ms Nariman Khan
                                                Head, Safer Schools Division, Department of Educatio, Cape Town
                                                
                                                Mr Bongani Mcoyana
                                                Chairperson, South African Democratic Teachers’ Union, Western Cape

Mr David Millar
Principal, Norman Henshilwood High School, Cape Town

DATE:                                      Thursday 26 February 2009
TIME:                                       17H30 to 19H30
VENUE:                                    Centre for the Book, 62 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town
RSVP:                                      Lavenia Benjamin
TEL:                                         (021) 689 1005
E-MAIL:                                   lavenia @ ccr.uct.ac.za
Website:                                 http://www.ccr.org.za/

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National Moot Court League for Grade 10s - 12s

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 23 Feb, 2009

Spotted this ad in the Sunday Times (22/02/09)

"The Services Seta is in the process of creating a National Moot Court League for Grade 10's,11's and 12's. This extra-mural activity is directed at those learners wishing to pursue studies in Law and Social Sciences and it is intended to sensitise and expose them to the context and complexity of the practise of law in South Africa.

Each grade will be dealt with as a separate league and a competition will be run on a Provincial and National basis."

The competition is open to public and private schools and is to be launched in June 2009 in the provinces, with national competitions planned for September.

"The intention is to encourage learners to develop their own personal Portfolio's of Evidence (POE's) inline with the existing Paralegal Qualification in stages through the three grades."

In 2010, bursaries will be made available to schools which to participate in our Para-Legal Learnership programme offered to selected groups of learners from Grade 10 onwards, selected from their performance results in the Moot Court League."

Interested schools (principals and chairpersons of governing boards) are requested to send an email, including details of the teacher-in-charge of the Schools Debating Club to their local regional offices.   The contact person at the Cape Town regional office is Ndiphe Ntusikazi  ndiphen at serviceseta dot org dot za or phone 021 425 0417.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Futures of Learning: Learning institutions and new media

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 21 Feb, 2009

Futures of Learning is a collective blog dedicated to the topic of new media and learning. The members of the blog are part of a project, funded by the MacArthur Foundation, that is conducting an international survey of research in the field.

The blog focusses on two areas: an international review of research on how people are adopting digital and networked media and the second,  a review of learning institutions that are incorporating new media in innovative ways. 

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Internet children leaving parents behind

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 13 Feb, 2009
Story spotted on the Guardian

"Children are spending increasing amounts of their lives in front of televisions, computers and games consoles, cramming in nearly six hours of screen time a day, according to research.

The online activity is building barriers between parents and children, the authors say, with a third of young people insisting they cannot live without their computer."

Some of the claims in the story:-

 * A quarter of five-year-olds have the internet in their room. One in three eight-year olds have a mobile phone

*  By the time children leave primary school two in five have the net in their room. Four out of five still read for pleasure.

* Around half 13 - 16 years olds  have internet access, spending 2.2 hours a day on sites such as YouTube, Bebo and MySpace. Almost all have their own phone.

 

 

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Google's Literacy Project

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 12 Feb, 2009

From the  Official Google Africa Press Release announcing that the Literacy Project resource was now available in French as well....  

“The Literacy Project” is an online resource for teachers, literacy organisations and anyone interested in reading promotion and education. In addition to the existing English, German and Spanish versions, the Literacy site is now available in four languages . And two years down the line, we are happy to see that hundreds of organizations have signed up to our Literacy Map, created Literacy related blogs, search literacy related Books and Journals, and contributed to the recently created Literacy forum. 

 

  • Books: find and search within books about literacy, reading promotion, and education, as well as classic children’s and adult literature.
  • Academic Texts:  search for literacy-related content in peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles.
  • Literacy videos: See what literacy organisations, schools, and educators around the world are doing to promote literacy—or share your own project with the world.
  • Book blogs:  Share your knowledge and ideas about literacy and reading with the world by creating a "blog" - short articles and stories that you write for others to read.
  • Book clubs and groups: Discover forums on literacy projects and ideas, start your own debate, or join in The Literacy Project forum.
  • Literacy Map:  From Kenya to Bangladesh, Canada to Mexico. Find literacy organisations around the world, and search project and contact information.
  • Custom Literacy Search:  Do targeted searches within literacy and education organisations’ websites.

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Education in the Budget

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 11 Feb, 2009

Quoting from the budget.  (page 12/13)

Government’s contribution to public education remains our single largest investment,because we know that it is the key to reducing poverty and accelerating long-term economic growth. Education spending has grown by 14 per cent a year for the past hree years and accounts for 140.4 billion in the spending plans of provinces and ational government for 2008/09.

We received a tip from Mr. Xolani Notshe of Port Elizabeth thanking us for allocating money to libraries. He says “libraries are central in community development. Libraries will assist your successor to collect more taxes because we would be an educated and skilled nation”. I agree entirely.

Key priorities in education include extending the no-fee schools policy to 60 per cent of s chools, from 40 per cent at present, expanding the school nutrition programme, reducing average class sizes in schools serving lower income communities, increasing expenditure on school buildings, strengthening teacher training programmes and recapitalising technical high schools over the next three years. An additional R700 million is allocated for higher education subsidies and to accommodate the anticipated growth in student enrolment from 783 900 last year to 836 800 in 2011. The National Student Financial Aid Scheme receives an additional R330 million. Funding is provided for a new National Education Evaluation Unit.

Many South Africans will agree, I am sure, with Mr. Paul King who writes, “Regarding the salaries of teachers, I personally feel that we do not reward them enough for what they do and what we expect from them in terms of the daily care and education of our children.” Madam Speaker, a new salary dispensation for teachers was introduced last year, linked to school and teacher  performance, hence the urgency of establishing this new Evaluation Unit

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Calling School Librarians: School Library Seminar

Posted by Ingrid Thomson | 6 Feb, 2009
School Library Seminar  3-5 June 2009
Theme: School Libraries vital for Teaching and Learning

Gauteng Department of Education: Multimedia & LTSM Directorate
and International Association of School Librarianship (IASL)
Region: Africa Sub-Sahara

The Multimedia Unit of the Gauteng Department of Education, in cooperation with IASL and the School Library and Youth Services Interest Group (SLYSIG) of the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA), will be hosting a School Library Seminar in Gauteng on 3-5 June 2009.


The aim of the seminar is to provide opportunities for:

            The professional development of teachers responsible for libraries in support of curriculum

            Sharing of best practices

            Networking between school library practitioners and service deliverers to exchange information and ideas.

            Empowering teachers and officials to help learners to access, understand, evaluate and use information as a critical outcome that cuts across all learning areas.

            The promotion of IT use in teaching and learning

The seminar will benefit everyone who is involved or has an interest in school libraries: administrators, officials, educationists, teachers and any other stakeholders.

There will be presenters from various African countries and abroad.

Presentations will be of interest to all, including workshops for beginning school librarians, experienced school librarians, officials and decision-makers. Let us network and learn from each other!

The registration fee is R1500.

Diarise this seminar. More information will be available at a later stage.

The registration opens 2 March 2009

Contact person:  Busi Dlamini – Multimedia Unit Head, IASL Regional Director: Africa Sub Sahara
Tel:        +27 11 355-0763                                Fax: +27 11 355-0766 or 865670350
E-mail: busid at gpg.gov.za

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